Gianluca Cadenasso defeated Papoe 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in the San Gregorio di Catania final on October 18, 2026. Victory at the new Italian clay-court Challenger 50 gave him a second title at that level, in both the season and his career, after Asuncion in March.
SuperTennis reported that the twenty-two-year-old underwent surgery for a wrist-ligament injury in July, shortly after reaching a career-high ranking of 190. He entered this tournament as the third seed. Those dates place the title within a season interrupted by surgery.
Their earlier meeting came in the 2025 Pitesti M25 quarterfinals, when Cadenasso retired at 1-5 in the opening set. This time he lost the second set, then took the third 6-4 to finish the match.
His year also included qualifying appearances at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. In Rome’s main draw he led Thiago Agustin Tirante by a set and a break. Those tour experiences and the interruption for surgery sit between his first Challenger title in Asuncion and his second in Catania.
